South Carolina sheriff’s deputy fired after probe into multiple spouses

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COLUMBIA, S.C. — A Sumter County sheriff's deputy was fired for being married to two women at the same time, and his second wife was married to another man at the time of their wedding, according to a department investigation.

Jay Follin, 27, was separated but not divorced from his first wife when he married Melissa McLeod on July 20 last year in Georgia, according to an internal investigation by the Sumter County Sheriff's Department.

Sheriff's Maj. Gary Metts said Follin was fired Wednesday.

Metts said Follin knew he was still legally married when he wed Melissa McLeod, 28. Follin spent some time as a Sumter police officer before moving away, but after returning, Metts hired him as a sheriff's deputy.

"He's a great officer. I didn't ever have a problem with him," Metts said, adding that the incident comes as a "total shock."

McLeod's first husband is Kelly McLeod, 32, who lives in Sumter. The couple had separated, but Kelly McLeod filed a complaint with the sheriff's department after his wife told him she and Follin had married.

The State Law Enforcement Division is investigating the case at the request of Sumter County Sheriff Anthony Dennis, SLED spokesman Lt. Mike Brown said.

Neither Follin nor Melissa McLeod has been charged with any crime.

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